Case file · Series 7, Episode 3 · Season 7, Episode 3
The Fisher King
A Celtic spear and a reopened burial mound disturb the lies left behind by a fatal archaeological dig.
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
Ancient ritual imagery gives a family-and-academic feud an unusually mythic edge.
- Best for
- Archaeological settings, old grievances and a darker atmosphere.
- Mood
- Dark historical mystery
- Team
- DCI Tom Barnaby with DS Dan Scott
- Spoiler guidance
- Read the premise freely; open the marked sections only after watching. Check the linked provider advisory for further viewing information.
Why it matters
Ancient ritual imagery gives a family-and-academic feud an unusually mythic edge.
This case is a useful pick for viewers drawn to archaeology and contested accounts of the past. Ancient objects and a much more recent death give the investigation two different timescales. The appeal lies in that overlap: people may speak about heritage while also defending personal interests. Read the legendary imagery as part of the atmosphere, then let Barnaby investigate the human relationships around it.
Watch for
Distinguish evidence about an object from the story somebody tells about it. Authority and ownership are worth questioning separately.
Before you choose
This is a crime investigation using mythic imagery, not a guide to Celtic belief or a promise of supernatural events.
Casebook editorial interpretation. ITVX synopsis · archaeology and historical-death premise ↗
Break the seal: reveal the finding
Who was the killer in The Fisher King? (spoiler)
The artefacts point back to the original excavation, where professional jealousy and violence were concealed as an accident.
Spoiler-safe viewing companion
Three questions to carry into the episode
Three spoiler-safe questions for your rewatch.
- Place
What does Midsomer Barrow conceal?
- Theme
Which details could have more than one meaning?
- Teamwork
Watch DCI Tom Barnaby and DS Dan Scott: who notices what?
More episode detailsProduction, cast, deaths and filming information
Credits, context and checked facts
Production and cast
- TV series
- Series 7
- Episode number
- Episode 3
- Written by
- Isabelle Grey
- Directed by
- Richard Holthouse
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 11 January 2004
- Reported filming period
- July–August 2003
- Detective
- DCI Tom Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Dan Scott
- Pathologist
- Dr George Bullard · Barry Jackson
- Principal setting
- Midsomer Barrow
- Casebook tone
- Dark
Sources accompany the production credits and filming links.
Fictional settings and real filming places are listed separately. Filming links include 2 mapped areas; 1 exact site.
Credits and archive connections
- Writer credits1 episode credited to Isabelle Grey
- Director credits16 episodes directed by Richard Holthouse
- Release positionCase 31 of 144
- Story characterDark · Archaeology · Celtic legend
- Location evidence1 exact screen-use match
Sources for the production file
Published episode chronology and credits ↗Official ITV programme page ↗Filming-location reference index ↗Credits follow the linked chronology. Dates can differ between territories. Consult original credits for story, teleplay and adaptation wording. External synopses may contain spoilers.
Selected episode credits
The Fisher King cast
These selected cast entries link to their published profiles. They do not include every name shown in the end credits.
Jim Carter
Nathan Green is a figure in the archaeological and family history surrounding the discovery of an ancient artefact. Carter's grounded authority suits an episode concerned with ownership, inheritance and competing versions of the past.
Open actor profile →Jane Wymark
Henry Ian Cusick
Lynda Bellingham
Diana Kent
Susannah Doyle
Malcolm Tierney
Rebecca Saire
Tim Treloar
Terrence Hardiman
Nicholas Rowe
Nick Barber
The performers behind this case
Core cast
Follow the cast links for full actor and character guides.
John Nettles
Tom Barnaby · Detective Chief Inspector- Bergerac
- Poldark
- Royal Shakespeare Company
John Hopkins
Dan Scott · Detective Sergeant- Royal Shakespeare Company
- Poldark
- Horizon game series
Barry Jackson
Dr George Bullard · Police pathologist- Cathy Come Home
- Doctor Who
- Barry Lyndon
Image credits identify the licence used. No programme publicity stills are reproduced.
Forensic team
Dr George Bullard
- Credit
- Off-screen consultation
- Played by
- Barry Jackson
Spoiler-controlled deaths
Deaths recorded in this case
4 people die in this case, according to the linked death record.
Break the seal: reveal the list of deaths
- Roger Heldman (historical)
Murder · Other recorded death · historical or before the main case
Performer check- Roger Heldman: not listed in the current published cast recordNo Roger Heldman performer appears in the current published cast record. Gareth Heldman is a different character, so no identity is inferred.
- Gareth Heldman
Murder · Stabbing or impalement
Performer check- Gareth Heldman: Henry Ian Cusick
- David Heartley-Reade
Murder · Gunshot
Performer check- David Heartley-Reade: Nicholas RoweThe list of deaths prints ‘Hartley-Reid’; the published cast record supports ‘Heartley-Reade’, used here.
- Dr. James Lavery
Murder · Fall
Performer check- Dr. James Lavery: Terrence HardimanThe list of deaths gives only ‘Dr. Lavery’; the published cast record supplies the given name James, used here.
Break a second seal: reveal the verified killer
Who was the killer in The Fisher King? (spoiler)
Paul Heartley-Reade (Per Hansen)Paul, living under the name Per Hansen after faking his own death, killed Roger Heldman during the 1970 excavation and later killed Gareth Heldman, David Heartley-Reade and Dr James Lavery. The four deaths are attributed to the same perpetrator across the historical and present-day strands.
Verified motive
Paul killed Roger after Roger assaulted Miriam, then disappeared into the identity of Per Hansen. He killed Gareth, David and Lavery when the renewed excavation and family inquiries threatened to expose the 1970 murder and his assumed identity.
Verified important clue
Archive case 31 · checked 16 September 2026Per Hansen's surgically repaired handSeeing the injury without its glove links Per to Paul Heartley-Reade, whose hand was damaged during the 1970 dig, exposing the assumed identity that connects the historical killing to the present murders.
Verified decisive clue
Archive case 31 · checked 17 September 2026Per Hansen's surgically repaired handSeeing the damaged hand without its glove matches the injury Paul Heartley-Reade suffered during the 1970 excavation and exposes Per's assumed identity. The match connects Roger Heldman's historical killing and the three present-day murders to the same offender while preserving the attempt to frame Harry Green.
Verified red herring
Archive case 31 · checked 17 September 2026Harry Green's fight with Gareth and missing spearheadHarry admits fighting Gareth over Vanessa but first lies about his injured face, has no alibi and had left an ancient iron spear by the river; its head is found in Gareth's wound. Gareth picked up that weapon after the fight, allowing Paul Heartley-Reade to take it and kill him before using it again to frame David.
Verified death and discovery order
Archive case 31 · checked 16 September 2026- deathRoger Heldman is killed in 1970
Paul Heartley-Reade kills Roger during the archaeological excavation after Roger assaults Miriam.
- discoveryPaul disappears as Per Hansen
Paul fakes his own death and lives under the name Per Hansen, leaving Roger's killing unresolved for decades.
- deathGareth Heldman is killed
Paul kills Gareth with the Iron Age spear when the renewed excavation threatens the old secret.
- discoveryThe spear links the present to the dig
Gareth's death at the barrow turns the 1970 excavation and the missing artefacts into present-day evidence.
- deathDavid Heartley-Reade is killed
Paul shoots David as the family inquiry closes in on Roger's death and Paul's identity.
- deathDr James Lavery is killed
Paul kills Lavery when the doctor becomes another threat to the concealed history.
- discoveryPer Hansen's identity is exposed
The investigation identifies Per as Paul and attributes the historical and present-day deaths to the same offender.
Real place → fictional identity
Where was The Fisher King filmed?
Mapledurham House
Used as: The historic house becomes the Heldman family residence.
Representative photograph of the real filming location; the exact camera angle or building may differ.Sources accompany the identified filming places.
Wider filming areas
